Last summer brought a lot of uncertainty. With a pandemic on our shoulders, it was hard to find an activity you could do without coming 6 feet near another person. For many people, that activity was golf. The low group counts, and spacious greens provided a safe activity anyone could do.
Although last spring when the first lock down happened was a different story. Carl Kennes is the director of golf and part owner of the Wardsville golf club. He owns the golf course with his wife Laura.
“last year we opened on March 15, then effective March 23, we were in lockdown and all businesses that were non-essential were ordered to close. We closed after eight days of operating and did not reopen till May 16.”
Once the courses were allowed to open again, Carl noticed an increase in golfers.
“Teenagers definitely needed something to do you know, the other sports that they would play like organized sports, weren’t allowed to really run. So definitely the younger players were coming out and starting the game.”
Even with a late start to the season, last year, Carl is hopeful to start on time this year.
“Golf has many, many benefits to both the Ontario economy and mental health benefits. It’s a perfect recreational sport, given that you can play with a grandparent and you can play on a certain basis, which is fun for both of you. It’s not like a contact sport. It’s a sport that you can start from a very young age and play till a very old age. Golf was on the increase last year for the first year in probably 20 years as far as participation and we hope the golfers stay in the game, regardless of whether the pandemic ends sooner or later. I think there’s good benefits for having golf courses open.”
Brad Adams, the general manager of the Sunningdale Golf and country club is also hopeful to open on time this year.
“The only thing is the wild card, any government mandates and any potential lockdown. Obviously, nobody knows what that could bring and what the province or even local health authorities could do. But we’re hopeful that golf, and the golf course and club industry has shown that we can operate responsibly. And it’s a very needed avenue for people to get out and enjoy the outdoors safely.”
Over at the Westminster Trails, John Simmons, the club house manager, is hard at work preparing for the spring.
“It’s a matter of cleaning everything up from last year, any maintenance we have to do inside and stuff like that. So once that’s all done, then it’s a matter of picking the phones and talking to people that had tournaments and trying to set it up which is a little hard, because last year most tournaments were canceled, but that’s what we do.”
Last year, a few small tournaments were hosted.
“It’s a social thing, right when you have a big tournament. And we couldn’t do that anymore. We couldn’t put 100 people up in the upstairs for banquets and stuff. So hopefully that might change. Who knows? I wish I had a crystal ball so I could tell you.”
Despite COVID still being here, Our golf courses are hopeful to open on time and hopefully host more tournaments.
